Journal

Broadcast of the film I produced for SBS Dateline documenting our Darien crossing has been pushed to early September, until the Olympics blow over. I assure you it will be worth the wait: what started as a half-hour project has expanded into a full hour. In the meantime, here's a trailer featuring stellar camerawork from my pal Roger Arnold and back-of-the-beyond antics from the inimitable Carlos Villalon. If he brings to mind Dennis Hopper in Apocalypse Now, you're not alone.

Today I had the surreal experience of sitting in an empty room and speaking to the country about our Darien Gap crossing on NPR’s OnPoint program. Host Sascha Pfeiffer (of Boston Globe/“Spotlight” movie fame) led an hour-long discussion and Leonard Doyle, the media director for the International Organization for Migration, joined in to provide some perspective on the global migration phenomenon. Several callers weighed in, too, and, aside from one hardline border blocker, I was affirmed by the sympathies they shared for migrants risking it all for a better, more dignified life.

Earlier this week I also spoke with Outside magazine editor Chris Keyes for their new podcast. We had a hearty discussion about the logistics of the trip, my motivations for reporting the story and some of the pangs that go with leaving people in distress behind. The producers even managed to include some gritty sound bites from our forthcoming documentary film, which airs in early September on SBS Dateline, Australia’s leading current affairs show. It was an incredible journey, and the film promises to bring it to life in all its intensity, darkness and hope.